Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Week #2 Blog Post

What is the most important safety rule you can think of that is on the safety contract? 

The most important rule on the safety contract would be rule #1: Conduct yourself in a responsible manner at all times in the science room. Horseplay, practical jokes, and pranks will not be tolerated. 

Why is it important? 

This rule is so important because most of the accidents that happen in science lab are ones that happen when you aren't handling dangerous things. Because people don't think there is anything that could hurt them, they don't pay attention as closely as they should. Also, lots of people say, "I was just joking!" Sometimes joking can turn into negative things when people aren't taking care of their business, and lots of people may take things personally even though you are just "joking."

What would happen if that rule isn't followed?

People get hurt if this rule isn't followed. Especially if there are things out on the cabinets and people don't pay attention to their surroundings.

What rule is the most useless?

Use extreme caution when using matches, a burner or hot plate. 

Why is it useless?

Really? People need to be told to be careful with hot things? Oh my, if you don't know this by now, you probably shouldn't be in middle school. It is crazy that the rule has to be included. Guess not everyone uses their common sense.

Describe a situation where the most useless rule would apply.

If we were using a hot plate in one class and the next period someone came in and assumed it was off or not being used so they touched it. I guess in that case you might not know that it is actually hot; however, common sense says don't touch it or if you do, approach it very slowly to feel if any heat is coming off of the burner.



Friday, August 26, 2011

Favorite Part of Science

My favorite area of science is physical science. I love to learn about how things work and how things are explained through math and physics. Much of physical science are things we already know about and learn about when we are just toddlers. For example, gravity. We don't always call it gravity, but we learn that when we through off the table, it falls. This means we are just adjusting what we call it.

Another aspect of physical science that I love to learn about is chemistry. We all know that if you leave something outside that is metal it will rust. I love to understand that rust really means that oxygen and iron are combining. Before scientist knew about atoms, they had interesting ways of understanding the world. For example,  in ancient Greece, Aristotle (click to see the Wikipedia Article) thought that everything was made of five elements: Fire, Air, Water, Earth, and Aether. We now know that there are actually 118 elements and they have names like, oxygen, carbon, uranium, and neon. So, people have always been working to figure out what makes up the universe around us. I like to continue that work; it makes me feel like a part of history.

There are lots of other areas that I like to think and learn about. Maybe this year we will be able to explore those.